Smiling Faces - The Undisputed Truth

Saturday, August 27, 2011

I read the Wikipedia article relating
to Hurricane Andrew facts and it is accurate for the most part, but
excludes some important issues. Really sorry I didn't try harder to
put that new and complicated model printer with a scanner together so
I could post the images here, but it was too much for me and I threw
its many parts back in its box and returned it to Walmart. So here we
are...

Driving south on the Florida Turnpike
hours after it all hit was the easiest drive ever – few vehicles
headed south, all tolls were open, and no state troopers or cops
anywhere. Yes, I confess to driving 100 mph, but no worry as I know
how to drive; I learned in Germany where they have an actual test of skill. At some point right after Bird
Road exit (S.W. 40th Street), all of the signs
disappeared. So if one didn't know where they were going they were
out of luck. I knew where I was going.

I exited on S.W. 186 Street (Quail
Roost Drive). I just knew the exit, though there were no signs. I
knew to drive east towards the bay, though there were no street signs
or traffic lights anywhere. This area is known as Perrine. There was
nothing green. All the trees were stripped bare and looked like
sticks and all of the foliage and vegetation was gone... really gone.
Shocking mainly because Miami is better known for its greenery, or
was.

Driving east towards Cutler Ridge, the
bay, it only got worse. There were still no signs, not even stop
signs or any means available to identify location, so I just drove
east and eventually made it to Old Cutler Road. Most houses were
still standing, but windows were now shredded glass and and vehicles
littered the streets, twisted beyond recognition. Power poles and
lines were all over the place, blocking roadways, on top of houses.
Shreds of glass and twisted metal everywhere is the prevailing
memory.

Driving through the devastation I
finally made it to my friend's home. They had holes in what was left
of the roof, no windows, mud all over the floors and walls... We
unloaded the car and were soon consuming barbeque and beer – never
forget the charcoal; I didn't. Their daughter and her husband arrived
in short time – their trailer in Homestead was gone – and we
heard the stories of massive devastation in Homestead (South Dade
County). They had driven there in a vehicle with shreds of glass all
over the place. Of course they cleaned off what they could before
embarking on that journey, but shredded glass can almost never be
cleared completely, and certainly not in an hour and they had cuts all over.

My friends and the children had spent
the worst part of the hurricane in the bathroom and in a bedroom
closet. And then all was quiet, too quiet, they knew something was
wrong, and the real damage began. Tornadoes took anything standing,
with the exception of a coffee table and an eggshell hanging from the
embroidered Easter decoration; both were intact in the exact location
they were in when it all started. They were working to cover what
remained of the roof with plastic sheeting. It started to rain and
the sky turned dark, like icing on a devastation cake.

I left before sundown with a list of
items to bring back on my next trip, the day after. The area was
under martial law and anyone on the streets after dark would be
arrested. It was day 3 after Andrew hit when I returned. Odd enough,
my friend's Bellsouth landline worked through it all so we were in
contact. Back in Orlando the Red Cross was begging for donations for
victims: cash and other items. It was day 3 and then day 4 after, but
still no one came to help. The Red Cross had a truck sitting on S.W.
40th Street (Bird Road) and S.W. 87th Avenue
(Galloway), miles before any of the devastation.

The looting had started full force and
the Red Cross feared driving into the area, at least that is what
they stated to me on the phone when I called the Orlando office
demanding answers. They stated that their trucks were being
overturned and even hijacked.

On day 6 after I made my third trip
down. Still no Red Cross, but Burger King and Arby's were out there
in trucks passing out food. I was informed that they arrived on day 5
after and were constantly refilling and returning. Burger King
Corporation took the place of Red Cross, the state and federal
government, and anyone else that should have been there. Meanwhile
the USAF was landing jets with necessities and supplies to pass out
in Homestead, but other soldiers (don't know if they were National
Guard or Army) were holding off the people with AK-47s. Riots ensued
until they finally started passing the stuff out.

Around a hundred monkeys escaped from a
laboratory at Monkey Jungle and many escaped from a lab at the
University of Miami. Exotic birds and animals escaped from the
devastated Metro Zoo. The people were not the only ones to lose their
homes.

Everyone was armed, but then it is
Miami. I have photos of National Guard handcuffing looters to bars on
a convenience store directly behind my friend's house. There was a
clear view without the trees and bushes present. The helicopters were out
full force and enforcing the sundown curfew. After my third trip I
didn't return for a month as my friends had the basics under control.
The lasting memory on that last trip was all of the U-Hauls lining
the streets. The people were leaving Miami with what they had left.
Many moved to Broward County and many to Orlando to start a new life.
The Miami that I knew would never be again.

My son's father worked with our friend
doing contractor work and eventually AC repair work for the next
months. He lived in an RV in their driveway. The main point that I
recall him making is that it was hot, seriously hot, and they were
taking cold water showers. They did have beer and barbeque on a daily
basis though. Eventually my friends were able to buy the house they'd
rented for pennies on the $, and of course had to deal with all the
repairs.

Don't forget that no one came. I recall
President Bush (H.W.) flying over the devastated areas in a
helicopter and people were waving from their rooftops. Everyone
painted their insurance info (company and policy #) on the roof
and/or on the sides of the house so that insurance adjusters could
identify policy holders. The areas hit the worst were not warned or
ordered to evacuate and no one came until Burger King arrived on day
5 after, but by day 7 after a variety of organizations and people
made their way in. It was 25+ heavily populated miles of solid devastation in South
Dade.

2 comments:

As a survivor of Andrew, myself, I sadly say, this is the most heart wrenching thing I have ever lived through. My house was on Haitian Drive, off of Carribean Blvd. To say the least it irked me to have military personnel walking the streets with full automatic weapons in hand, and military law and rule during the aftermath. I myself have left Cutler Ridge (I AM A RIDGE RAT TO THE CORE), it is still and always will be home. Excellent post.

Thank you for your comment. I know the area you refer to and driving through there left me stunned and silent in total disbelief.

Nothing could ever be the same, though it all looks good today. I wish someone that lived through Andrew and the aftermath would write a book about it as too many have forgotten it ever happened, like a distant memory. It was government response at its very worst.

What they called hurricanes in 2004-05 on the east coast of Central Florida were tropical storms in comparison, yet FEMA was passing out cash left and right for no real reason.

It's been a long time since I have heard that expression (Ridge Rat). lol